Applying Research to Increase Student Achievement Meredith Greene, Ph.D.

Student Achievement Student- level factors School- level factors Teacher- level factors

Home atmosphere Learned intelligence and background knowledge Motivation Student-Level Factors

Since the 1990’s, educational research has repeatedly found that there is a stronger correlation between students’ background knowledge and their achievement than between their measured intelligence and achievement.

Who Are Your Students? Abilities, skills Aptitudes Learning style preferences Interest areas Past experiences (in and out of school) Level of commitment to own growth Attitudes about learning/effort/responsibilities

Social Development / Work Habits Interacts positively with others Follows instructions / directions Accepts responsibility for actions Completes homework Resolves conflicts appropriately Takes pride in quality of work Works independentlyDemonstrates organizational skills Uses time effectivelyTakes care of own materials and belongings Follows rules and routinesRespects school property and property of others Completes class work

Successful teaching requires two elements: student understanding and student engagement.

School-level Factors In order of impact on student achievement, most to least: 1)Guaranteed and viable curriculum 2)Challenging goals and effective feedback 3)Parent and community involvement 4)Safe and orderly environment 5)Collegiality and professionalism

Goals and Feedback High expectations and mild pressure to achieve Monitoring, tracking the extent to which goal are met The frequency of formative assessments is related to academic achievement.

One powerful single modification that enhances student achievement is timely, specific, and non-graded feedback.

Level Factors Instructional Strategies Classroom Management Classroom Curriculum Design Teacher - These 3 factors are highly interdependent

Most effective strategies for actively processing of content: 1. Visual 2. Dramatic 3. Verbal

Specific Instructional Strategies that Affect Student Achievement (in order, most to least) 1.Identifying similarities and differences 2.Summarizing and note-taking 3.Reinforcing effort and providing recognition 4.Homework and practice 5.Nonlinguistic representations 6.Cooperative learning 7.Setting objectives and providing feedback 8.Generating and testing hypotheses 9.Questions, cues, and advance organizers

Strategies for New Content: Identify critical information (provide cues) Organize students to interact with new knowledge Preview new content Chunk content into small portions Ask students to summarize and clarify after each chunk (group processing) Elaborate on new information Record and represent knowledge in multiple ways Have students reflect on what they understand and what they are still confused about

Strategies for Practice and Deepening Content Review Organize groups to review or practice skills Practice skills, strategies, and processes Examine similarities and differences Examine errors in reasoning Use homework for independent practice Revise knowledge

Improving learning through assessment depends on five, deceptively simple, key factors: The provision of effective feedback to students The active involvement of students in their own learning

The adjusting of teaching to take account of the results of assessments The recognition of the profound influence assessment has on the motivation and self-esteem of students, both crucial influences on learning The need for students to be able to assess themselves and understand how to improve

The most powerful single modification that enhances student achievement is timely, specific, and non-graded feedback.

Common Rubrics are more equitable for students represent the most effective strategy for determining whether the curriculum is being taught and, more importantly, learned promote consistency in expectations and priorities provide timely, accurate, and specific feedback to both students and teachers

“... final grades should never be determined by simply averaging the grades from several grading periods” O’Connor, K., How to Grade for Learning: Linking Grades to Standards, Second Edition, Corwin, 2002, 135

“No student’s grade should depend on the achievement or behavior of other students.” William Glasser

Students should be assessed or checked on everything (or almost everything) they do every score should not be included in the grade. AND everything that is assessed and/or checked does not need a score BUT

Consider…  The amount of courses teachers took in instructional techniques accounts for four times the variance in teacher performance than does subject- matter knowledge.  Meaningful professional development activities can account for as much variance in student achievement as does student background.

Effects on Student Achievement (with student entering at 50 th percentile) Scenario Ach Percentile after 2 years Average school and average teacher 50 th Least effective school and least effective teacher 3 rd Most effective school and least effective teacher 37 th Least effective school and most effective teacher 63 rd Most effective school and average effective teacher 78 th Most effective school and most effective teacher 96 th

According to many years of research, the single most influential component of an effective school is the individual teachers within that school.

Selected References Marzano, R. J. (2007). The art and science of teaching: A comprehensive framework for effective instruction. Alexandria, VA: ASCD. Marzano, R. J. (2003). What works in schools: Translating research into action. Alexandria, VA: ASCD. Marzano, R. J., Pickering, D. J., and Pollock, J. E. (2001). Classroom Instruction that works: Research-based strategies for increasing student achievement. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.